Panesar must take a leaf out of Bedi's bible

[King]

Whether or not Ashley Giles saw the Oval pitch before making his final decision to retire, it was a well-timed announcement. He averages 75 runs a wicket here himself and this is the bowler's graveyard to end all graveyards. More... Panesar must take a leaf out of Bedi's bible By Simon Hughes Last Updated: 1:56am BST 11/08/2007 Have your say Read comments Whether or not Ashley Giles saw the Oval pitch before making his final decision to retire, it was a well-timed announcement. He averages 75 runs a wicket here himself and this is the bowler's graveyard to end all graveyards. Video: The Analyst at the Test Scoreboard: England v India, third Test In pics: Tourists press home advantage Sourav Ganguly inquired during the Trent Bridge Test why it was that England didn't prepare pitches to help their bowlers, particularly Monty Panesar. This strip of blemishless soil will only increase his perplexity. Panesar, England's bowler of the summer, is unlikely to grow to love this bit of south London either. He came here last year against Pakistan and soon got his ton up for little reward (1-103). In the last two days he has sent down 270 deliveries, only about two of which turned off the straight, through no fault of his own. He had just two tail-end wickets to show for his labours, bringing his tally for the Test summer to 31. This is rarefied air for an England spinner. Only Jim Laker, Tony Lock, Derek Underwood and, believe it or not, Giles, have taken 30 wickets in a summer's Tests. Interviewed in midweek, Panesar credited the legendary Sikh left-armer, Bishen Bedi, as the man who most influenced his early spinning career. One of the mantras in his autobiography that Panesar devoured as a teenager was that only good balls get hit for six (the good length allowing the batsman to get underneath it for maximum elevation). Therefore such big hits should not overly concern the spinner. It would have been valuable advice yesterday given the number of perfectly decent Panesar deliveries that disappeared out of the park. There is no faulting Panesar's dedication or accuracy. What he does need to acquire, however, is the art of taking wickets on such unforgiving surfaces. This was Bedi's forte. Kumble puts India in complete control England selector and former off-spinner Geoff Miller tells a story of a match between Derbyshire and Bedi's Northamptonshire. Miller stood at the non-striker's end as Bedi gave a masterclass of flight and guile. "What a spinner needs is a loop," Bedi said. "Watch." He proceeded to float up two plain balls which the batsman the other end, Ashley Harvey Walker, planted over the boundary. Bedi then made a play of bringing the field up, and sent down another tempter, apparently the same, but this time with more body action. The batsman's eyes lit up, the ball dipped in flight and the resultant skier was easily caught. "That sir," said Bedi to the admiring Miller, "is loop." It's an old-fashioned skill which, in an era of big bats and 'the right areas', is almost lost to the game. Yesterday afternoon cried out for an attempt to buy a wicket against a determined tail. Instead of lobbing one or two up with the field in to entice a mis-hit, however, Panesar generally maintained his usual brisk pace, still looking for bat-pad catches with silly points and short legs. Given his excellent summer, it's churlish to criticise, but Panesar might like to dip back into the Bedi bible when he gets a minute. The day of course belonged to the other spinner, Anil Kumble. The unglamorous mainstay of the Indian team for nearly two decades, he has always sold his wicket dearly without ever looking especially competent. Kumble is a scrapper by nature, and the way he brought up his maiden Test hundred epitomised his commitment. Down the wicket to Kevin Pietersen, he was stranded as the ball was fired quicker and wider, but somehow managed to get a bottom edge through the keeper's legs for four. He scrambled up from his despairing dive back into crease to celebrate his achievement covered in dust. He will not be shy either of getting his hands dirty over the weekend to force a famous Indian victory.

[Gambit]

Bedi's bible where 700(and counting) is the number of the beast/monster.